It seems I was partially right and partially wrong. First, I’d like to say whatever happened, I made some good decisions. We have been able to not only maintain momentum for a year, but for 4! Actually four and a half, but who’s counting? When I wrote the article, the group was level 11 and immersed in the first part of a 3 part Tomb of Horrors remake. Since then I’ve had 2 (more) children, ran a full 1-20 level campaign in another ruleset, experimented with other DMs and multiple rulesets, brought in boyfriends of players, kicked players out, and had multiple great players come and go from the group. All while maintaining a pretty consistently fun game and 3 core players from the very beginning. The foundation. A good foundation is vital. We’re now level 18, back in that original campaign and have just completed part 2 of the Tomb of Horrors, once again exploring the core setting and advancing the storyline. Our game is as strong as ever. Continue Reading »

Ok, so the D&D 30 day challenge took a bit of a hiatus. But today it’s back! And today we talk about our favorite gaming dice. This brings up a few things I’d like to talk about, things that are probably personal quirks but that perhaps some people share. I’ll just stream of consciousness this and see what happens. Continue Reading »

A close friend (and player in the group I run for) and I often sit around and discuss gaming, RPGs, game theory, dos and don’ts and whatnot. Sometimes it’s over lunch. Sometimes it’s after a game session. Sometimes it’s over instant messenger. In having these discussions, we frequently found ourselves referencing ideas from previous installments in these talks. We talked about taking notes, or starting up a google document, in order to archive some of the revelations we had in hashing out what went right and what went wrong in the game that week, or in prep, or in how the game or group was managed. We also had discussed recording these discussions in a video format and posting it on youtube. Over time, and after some soul searching, we decided it would make more sense as a standard podcast format, audio only.

So, I was giving my 22 month old son a bath last night and I got to thinking about a D&D campaign I’m currently running in the context of a ruleset I recently read. I do much of my best thinking in the shower and that holds true of baths as well, including those where I’m bathing my children. I recently read a rules-light retro clone called Ambition and Avarice. I very much liked it and will probably post about it specifically at some point. But, it got me to thinking about things I need to make sure to do, to not do and to highlight in my current campaign. Most were things that I already knew and have done, but that you often forget about in the “fog of war”; those times when you’re too busy managing the table and group to make sure you get them in each session. As I checked off the list and lathered up my sons adorable little head of hair, I realized they all held true for how I raise him, or WANT to raise him as he gets older. I’ll write them here as a simple numbered list. They are in no particular order. Continue Reading »

Honestly, I don’t have an obvious favorite gameworld. I guess I’d have to say either The Known World (eventually known as Mystara) or the The Nentir Vale. I’ve enjoyed both immensely. Perhaps it has something to do with the rulesets they used, which happen to be two of my favorites. Mystara being born of Basic D&D and The Nentir Vale being the core setting for D&D 4E. Kind of boring I suppose, but it is what it is. I’m sure there are lots of cooler D&D gamers out there who choose Planescape, or Spelljammer, Krynn or Birthright, or perhaps less imaginatively choose Dark Sun or Eberron (both of which are great btw). Then I’m guessing pretty much everyone else in existence (within D&D that is) would pick either Greyhawk (Old School) or The Forgotten Realms because it’s simply ubiquitous. Once you get out of D&D, I’m assuming we’ll say a lot of Glorantha, Baraive, Thedas, Hyborian Age, etc,

So if you read my previous post about favorite race, it’s probably no surprise my favorite class is Ranger. As I mentioned, I’ve always gravitated towards a connection to nature and the outdoors. As a person who enjoys time in the wilderness, I’ve always fancied myself as the type that might ultimately exist as that class in a fantasy world. Even more than that, I took a career test in 8th grade (without knowing what type of test it was at the time) and based on the answers I gave to the questions, it recommended Forest Ranger as a potential profession I should look into. I had never really given that much thought at the time, but seeing those words in an official way, outside of D&D, really made me realize that I was not just imagining things. But while I enjoy Rangers and feel most “at home” in that class, I’m perfectly happy playing pretty much any class. I tend to play martial classes more than casters but otherwise, I don’t have a lot of bias one way or the other. If I play a caster, I lean more toward healer than damage dealer or arcanist. I’ve never really been into playing characters with animal companions or with the ability to shape shift. No matter what class I play, I tend to gravitate towards ranged combat. I do love a good composite bow.

This is a toss up for me, between Elf and Halfling. I will probably go Elf because I play them more, but Halflings and the concept of a small, quiet race is very enticing. I think the draw to Elves is based largely on my personal perception of them as a class that is closer to the natural world. As a person who loves camping, the outdoors and animals, I’ve always felt a kinship with Elves, particularly what would later be considered Wood Elves, or Sylvan Elves. I think this is partially what draws me to Halflings as well. They feel like a race that is closer to nature. In the same way, I’ve been less drawn to High Elves, which seemed to have almost transcended this natural relationship. This natural bent I have will probably be relevant for day 3 as well. Check back to find out and feel free to give your own answers in the comments if you feel the need. I’m always curious why people play/enjoy the races they do.